Dispensing closures for bottles and other liquid containers



Oct. 22, 1957 B. FORMAN 2,810,499

DISPENSING CLOSURES FOR BOTTLES AND OTHER LIQUID CONTAINERS Filed June 7, 1955 wmw 40 FIG. 6

I I 50 i I 52 I I I 1 l 20!! I I Q! I I INVENTOR. 12 ,Bmjamfr; fbrmar/ 0" 23 BY 8% M F ATTORNEYS DESPENSING CLOSURES FOR BOTTLES AND OTHER LIQUID CONTAINERS Benjamin Forman, Stelton, N. 1.

Application June 7, 1955, Serial No. 513,649

7 Claims. (Cl. 222-482) This invention relates to closures for containers and particularly to closures for bottles having necks.

One object of the present invention is to provide a closure for liquid containers which closure includes new and improved means for dispensing the liquid within the container.

Another object of this invention is to provide a closure for a liquid container which closure provides new and improved means for dispensing the liquid within the container and provides for completely closing the container so as to prevent the liquid from flowing or evaporating therefrom.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved cap-type closure for a bottle having a neck which closure is provided with a movable pouring spout which permits the flow of liquid out of said bottle and when moved to one position and prevents liquid flow or evaporation from said bottle when in another position.

Still another object of the present invention is to provide a new and improved cap-type closure for a bottle having a neck which closure is provided with a movable pouring spout which permits the flow of liquid out of said bottle and when moved to one position and prevents liquid flow or evaporation from said bottle when in another position, and the pouring spout and the closure being arranged so that when the liquid flow and evaporation from the bottle is prevented, the pouring spout will be disposed so as to be flush with the cap-type closure thereby requiring no extra room for said spout.

Other objects of the present invention will become clear hereinafter as characteristic features of construction and mode of operation of this invention are described in detail.

Referring now to the drawings:

Fig. l is a perspective view of the neck of a bottle having a closure thereon embodying the present invention;

Fig. 1A is a plan view of the closure shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken along the line 22 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is a sectional view taken along the line 33 of Fig. 2;

Fig. 4 is a view similar to Fig. 2 showing the closure in condition to permit liquid to be dispensed from the bottle;

Fig. 5 is 'a side elevation view illustrating another form of closure embodying the present invention;

Fig. 6 is a side elevation view illustrating another embodiment of the present invention with some parts broken away to more clearly illustrate this embodiment; and

Fig. 7 is a plan view of the closure shown in Fig. 6.

Referring now to the drawings in detail and particularly Figs. 1 and 4, the cap-type closure 10 is shown in threaded engagement with the neck 12 of a bottle 14. The closure 10 includes an internally threaded cap 16 which may be made of any suitable material such as metal or plastic. Disposed within cap 16 and secured United States Patent G Patented Oct. 22, 1957 ice thereto by any suitable means such as a pressed fit is a tubular member 18 which may be made of any suitable non-porous material such as plastic or rubber. It will be seen that cap 16 and hollow member 18 between them form a housing for a chamber 26. A fiat cap member 17 is disposed against the inner portion of upper surface 19 of the cap 16 to reenforce said upper surface. in the upper surface 19 of cap 16 and in member 17 is an upper opening 22 in which is disposed an inverted L-shaped tubular member 24 which is mounted in opening 22 for vertical slidable movement therein. Mounted on the vertically extending portion 26 of inverted L- shaped tube 24 is a suitable closure member 28 which is movable with tube 24. Closure member 28 is proportioned to engage the walls adjacent opening 30 in the bottom of hollow member 18 so as to close oif said opening and thereby prevent liquid in the bottle from flowing into chamber 20 through said opening 30.

As shown in Fig. 2, the closure member 28 is in its sealing relation with opening 30 when member 24 is moved to its lowermost position. When tube 24 is moved upward to the position shown in Fig. 4, then liquid may enter chamber 20 through opening 31) in the hollow member 18. Tube 24 provides means for liquid to flow'out of the bottle through said chamber. In order for the liquid to flow out through said chamber, tube 24 is provided at the end thereof disposed within said chamber with a pair of apertures 32. Furthermore, it will be seen that an air inlet 34 extends through said cap 16 and member 17 from the outside atmosphere into chamber 26 in order to provide suitable venting to atmospheric pressure to permit the liquid to flow out of said chamber through tube 24. It will further be seen that by merely placing the finger over the outside opening 36 of air inlet 34, liquid flow out of the bottle through tube 24 may be prevented, thereby providing for a simple means for controlling the flow of liquid out of the bottle even when the liquid is in the chamber. Furthermore, when closure member 28 is in sealing relationship with opening 30, there is no means for the liquid in the bottle'to pass into chamber 29 either in liquid or vapor form in order to pass from said chamber out into the atmosphere. Accordingly, a simple means is provided for preventing evaporation or spillage in a closure of the type described herein.

In accordance with another highly desirable feature of the present invention, it will be noted that the cap 16 is provided in its upper surface with a groove or recess 38 which is adapted to receive the horizontally extendingportion 40 of tube 24 when said tube is in the lowermost position as shown in Fig. 2. With portion 40 of tube 24 disposed in recess 35, it will be seen that the upper surface of tube 24 is flush with the upper surface of cap 16 thereby resulting in the tube or pouring spout taking up no additional room over an ordinary cap. Furthermore, such a cap as shown in Figs. 1 to 4 is particularly desirable when used on bottles for alcoholic beverages which bottles normally have Government tax stamps 41 aflixed thereto in overlying relationship with the cap. With the tube 24 flush with the top of the .cap, the presence of the tube will not interfere with the aflixation of a. stamp to the top of the bottle. Such an arrangement is shown in dotted lines in Fig. 1. In order to facilitate the raising of tube 24 to its upper or pouring position, groove 38 is preferably widened at the center thereof and tube 24 is provided with a flange 43 to provide means for gripping said tube so that it can be readily moved upward to its pouring position.

Referring now to Fig. 5, a closure 10' is shown which is substantially identical in construction to the closure 10 but differs therefrom in that instead of tube 24 being L-shaped as it is in Figs. 1 to 4, this tube is a straight vertically extending tube and the portion extending above-cap 10', that is portion 42, is adapted to extend a substantial amount above the top of cap 16 when the closure member 28 is out of sealing relation with opening 30 to thereby .provide a substantial clearance when the bottle is moved to the horizontal position in order to pour liquid -out through the tube 24. Such an arrangement ishighly advantageous for a closure which is sold separately -from'the bottle and which is to be used Where clearance Iisknot a determining factor such as for bar use and the The present invention may also be embodied in a plug- -type closure 10" shown in Figs. 6 and 7. Such a closure is provided with a suitable housing, preferably made of resilient material such as polyethylene. The housing 'defines therew-ithin a hollow chamber 20 and the housing isrprovided with a lower tapered portion 44 havinga plurality of ridges 46 thereon which are adapted to engage the inner wall of neck 12 of a bottle and to thereby seal ofi'the neck toprevent liquid from flowing between closure 10 and-the neck of'the bottle. An opening '30" is provided at the bottom=of tapered portion 44,

this opening being adapted to be closed by a closure member 28" which is secured toa vertical member 48 slidably mounted for longitudinal movement in the upper surface 50 of the housing. Bygrasping knob 53 fixedly mounted on the upper end of member 48 and moving the member 48 upwardly, the closure member 28 will be moved out of sealing relation with opening 30" at the bottom of the housing in order to permit liquid to flow 4 into chamber 20" from the bottle.

The housing is also provided above the tapered portion 44 with an opening or outlet 52 which permits liquid to flow out of chamber 20 when desired. Anair inlet 34" is also provided in said housing in order topermit air to enter said chamber when the liquid flows outward therefrom. Again, it will be noted that since the air inlet 34" and outlet 52 are both disposed above the" location of where the bottle is sealed from the closure10, there can be no liquid flow or evaporation through either outlet 52 or air inlet 34""when the closure 28" is in sealing relation with opening 30".

Although I have herein suggested a use of my novel closure on bottles for alcoholic beverages, it will be obvious that'the present invention is also highly .desirable for use on all forms of liquid containers such as containers for liquid chemical reagents, ink and any other liquids that are commonly dispensed from containers or bottles.

Although I have herein shown and described several forms of thepresent invention, it Willbe understood that-various changes and modifications may be made therein within the scope. of the appended claims without departing fromthe spirit and scope of this invention.

Having thus described myinvention, what I claim and desire to secure by Letters Patent is:

1. A closure for'the neck of a bottle, comprising a cap adapted'to overlie the end of said neck, a hollow -membersecured to said cap and dependingtherefrom in chamber defining relation therewith, said hollow mem- -ber"being1disposed within theneck of the bottlewhen said cap overlies the end of said neck, said-hollowmem- =ber "having an opening. at the bottom thereof for permitting liquid to flow from said bottle into said chamber, said cap having an opening in the top thereof extending into said chamber and further being provided Withan air inlet extending into said chamber,-. an inverted L-shaped tube having the depending leg thereof slidably mounted in said cap openingand extending into said chamber, a closure member secured to said tube at the bottom thereof .for. closingoif thelower'iend ofcsaid tube and .beingmovable therewith to and from a position in'which .said. closure member is in sealing q-relation with :;said hollowmember opening whereby to prevent liquid, from flowing or evaporating from said bottle, said tube having an aperture in the wall thereof adjacent said closure member whereby when said closure member is out of sealing relation with said hollow member opening, liquid can flow out of said bottle by passing through said chamber and tube, said cap being provided with a recess therein for reception of the horizontal portion of said tube when said closure member is in sealing relation with said hollow member opening whereby said horizontal portion of said L-shaped tube is flush with said cap, said horizontal portion of said L-shaped tube being disposed above said cap when said closure member is out of sealing relation with said hollow member opening whereby to serve as a pouring spout.

2. A bottle top closure comprising a cap adapted to be releasably secured on the bottle top to close the latter, a hollow nipple depending from the cap into the bottle, the endof said nipple remote from said cap defining a valve seat, a tube extending through said cap and having the lower end thereof disposed within said nipple, said tube end being closed andhaving a valve element defining part, said tube being apertured above said valve element and the upper end of said tube extending outwardly of said cap and defining a dispensing spout, and said tube being movable from a retracted position in the upright disposition of the bottle wherein said valve element is engaged. in said valve seat to prevent evaporation of liquid from said bottle to a projected position wherein saidvalve element is spaced from said seat to permit for the flow of liquid. from the bottle through the nipple and tube aperture out of said spout.

' 3. A bottle top closure comprising a cap adapted to S be releasably secured on the. bottle top to close the latter,

a hollow nipple, depending from-the cap into the bottle, the end of said nipple remote from said cap defining a valve seat, a tube extending through said cap and having. the lower. end thereof disposed within said nipple, said tube end being closed by a valve element defining part, said tube vbeing apertured above said valve element and the upper end of said tube extending outwardly of said cap and defining a dispensing spout, and said tube being movable from a retracted position inthe. upright disposition of the bottle whereinisaid valve element is engaged, in saidvalve seat to preventevaporating of liquid from-said bottle to a projected position wherein said valve element is. spaced from said seat to permit for the flow of liquid from the bottle through the nipple and tube aperture out of said spout, and means for providing a finger-tip control of the flow of liquid from the bottle in the projected position of said tube.

4. A bottle top closure comprising a cap adapted'to be releasably secured on the bottle top to close the latter, ahollow nipple depending from the cap into the bottle, the end of said nipple remote from said cap defining a valve seat, atube extending through said cap and having the lower end thereof disposed within said nipple,

said tube end. being closed by a valve element defining part, said tube being apertured above said valve element and the upperv end of said tube extending outwardly of said cap and defining a dispensing spout, and said tube being movable from a retracted position in the upright disposition of the bottle wherein said valve, element. is engaged in said valve seat to prevent evaporation of liquid from said. bottle to a projected position wherein said valve element isspaced from saidseat to permit for the dew of liquid frornthe bottle through. the nipple and .tube aperture out of saidspout, and an airinlet defined in'said cap and extending from the exterior thereof for ;providing a finger-tip control of the flow of liquid from the bottle in the projected position of said tube.

5.-A",bottletop closure comprising a 'cap adapted'rto be releasably secured: on' thebottle topto close the latter, a hollow nipple depending from the cap intothe bottle, the end of saidinipple remote from said cap definling a'valve seat, a tube extending through said cap and having the lower end thereof disposed within said nipple,

said tube end being closed by a valve element defining part, said tube being apertured above said valve element and the upper end of said tube extending outwardly of said cap and defining a dispensing spout, and said tube being movable from a retracted position in the upright disposition of the bottle wherein said valve element is engaged in said valve seat to prevent evaporation of liquid from said bottle to a projected position wherein said valve element is spaced from said seat to permit for the flow of liquid from the bottle through the nipple and tube aperture out of said spout, and an air inlet defined in said cap and extending from the exterior thereof for providing a finger-tip control of the flow of liquid from the bottle in the projected position of said tube, the inner end of said inlet terminating upwardly of said valve seat whereby to prevent evaporation through said air inlet when said valve element is engaged in said valve seat.

6. A bottle top closure comprising a cap adapted to be releasably secured on the bottle top to close the latter, a hollow nipple depending from the cap into the bottle, the end of said nipple remote from said cap defining a valve seat, a tube extending through said cap and having the lower end thereof disposed within said nipple, said tube end being closed by a valve element defining part, said tube being apertured above said valve element and the upper end of said tube extending outwardly of said cap and defining a dispensing spout, and said tube being movable from a retracted position in the upright disposition of the bottle wherein said valve element is engaged in said valve seat to prevent evaporation of liquid from said bottle to a projected position wherein said valve element is spaced from said seat to permit for the flow of liquid from the bottle through the nipple and tube aperture out of said spout, said cap being separable from said nipple.

7. A bottle top closure comprising a cap adapted to be releasably secured on the bottle top to close the latter, a hollow nipple depending from the cap into the bottle, the end of said nipple remote from said cap defining a valve seat, a tube extending through said cap and having the lower end thereof disposed within said nipple, said tube end being closed by a valve element defining part, said tube being apertured above said valve element and the upper end of said tube extending outwardly of said cap and defining a dispensing spout, and said tube being movable from a retracted position in the upright disposition of the bottle wherein said valve element is engaged in said valve seat to prevent evaporation of liquid from said bottle to a projected position wherein said valve element is spaced from said seat to permit for the flow of liquid from the bottle through the nipple and tube aperture out of said spout, and means provided on said tube to facilitate thewithdrawal thereof through said cap to said projected position thereof, said means being adjacent the outer surface of the cap in the retracted position of the tube whereby to facilitate the sealing of said bottle by a seal which extends over said cap.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,784,795 Skonberg Dec. 9, 1930 2,133,679 Woeltjen Oct. 18, 1938 2,165,570 Olson et a1 July 11, 1939 

